1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to reels for fishing rods. In particular, it relates to fishing rod reels with gravity controlled brake assemblies that are automatically activated when a fishing line becomes slack.
2. Background Art
An annoying problem which confronts many fishermen is the unraveling of the fishing line spool when a fishing line which is rapidly being unwound under force suddenly loses that force when the line goes slack. For example, when a fishermen is casting a line, or when a fish strikes the line, the line is subjected to force which causes the fishing reel to unwind rapidly. When this happens, the spool holding the supply of fishing line spins rapidly to release extra line. Reels are designed to allow the spool to rapidly release fishing line so as not to reduce the distance for casting or to interfere with hooking the fish.
When the fishing line strikes the water after being cast, or when a fish changes direction, the fishing line may suddenly go slack. Even though the force pulling on the line is removed, the spool will continue to spin. This unnecessary spinning of the reel causes the fishing line to unravel and create a "bird's nest" within the reel assembly. When this happens, the fisherman is inconvenienced by having to rewind the spool to eliminate the bird's nest.
In some prior art fishing reels, a manual brake assembly is provided. The disadvantage associated with manual brake assemblies is that they require a high-level of skill on the part of the fisherman. The fisherman's timing must be precise to avoid prematurely braking the line too early and interfering with the casting or hooking the fish, or alternatively, to avoid braking the line too late which results in the creation of a bird's nest.
Attempts to correct this problem have resulted in the development of tension and centrifugal brakes. Tension brakes reduce the ability of the spool holding the fishing line to unravel which results in a reduced bird's nest problem. However, maintaining tension on the fishing line reduces performance by limiting casting distance. It would be advantageous to have a fishing line brake that does not maintain tension on the fishing line at all times.
Centrifugal brakes attempt to overcome this problem by only engaging the brake when the centrifugal clutch is engaged. While centrifugal brakes help to eliminate this problem, they also have significant drawbacks due to their complexity and cost. In addition, they add increased weight due to the number of components needed to effectuate this type of brake assembly.
While addressing the basic desirability of braking fishing lines with proper timing, the prior art has failed to provide a fishing line brake which is inexpensive to manufacture, which has a minimum number of components, which has a low weight, and which minimizes cost.